Course Name: Tools and Practices for Theory Development
Time and place: May 6-8, 2025, University of Turku
Learning goal and objectives:
While the aim to make a theoretical contribution is what most academic articles and theses have in common, there is relatively little explicit guidance on theory and theorization within most PhD programs. To remedy this situation, our course offers tools, practices, and other useful resources for the theory development process. The course explains what theory and theory development are and gives a detailed overview of the various types of theoretical contributions. Additionally, the course provides students with templates and designs for the theorization and theory visualization processes. The course also gives guidance regarding positioning, problematizing, and framing of an article and/or thesis as these practices are an essential part of carving out the theoretical contribution and presenting it compellingly to the chosen field. The course is particularly aimed at students writing or interested in writing conceptual articles, but it will also benefit students working with empirical research that aims for theory development.
Intended learning outcomes:
After completing the course, the student is expected to:
- have a thorough understanding of theory development as a scholarly practice
- be able to analyze different types of theoretical contributions and the associated theorization processes and apply these in their own research
- be able to explain the research design of the theorization process used in their own research
- be able to visualize theoretical ideas into frameworks and models
- understand ways to articulate a study’s theoretical contribution and research implications
- be aware of means to enhance a study’s impact potential.
Instructions and examination:
Format:
Lectures and workshop (3 days) with preparatory work and readings
Assessment:
- Reflective learning diary (max 2000 words), graded Pass/Fail
- Active participation during the workshop discussions and group work
Credits: 4 ECTS, the workload comprises of 24h in-class lectures and workshops, preparatory assignments, reading of an article package, and writing a learning diary.
Grading: Passed/Failed
Prerequisites: The course is particularly aimed at students writing or interested in writing conceptual articles, but it will also benefit students working with empirical research that aims for theory development. The course is suitable for doctoral students at all stages but students with at least 1-2 years of experience will be prioritized in the admittance if needed. The course is targeted towards doctoral students in all fields of Management and Business Studies.
Admittance: 25 students are admitted to the course.
- The applicants are to enrol to the course via email to the course coordinator (jaakkola@utu.fi) by March 21, 2025. The email should include a structured motivation letter (a Word or PDF file of 1-2 pages) that includes the following headings:
- Name
- Degree
- E-mail address
- University, faculty and/or department
- Major subject and/or research field
- Topic or title of dissertation
- Phase of doctoral studies
- Motives for participating in the course
- A notification of acceptance will be sent by email by April 4th, 2025.
- The deadline for the post-assignment is on May 19, 2025.
Instructors:
Dr. Elina Jaakkola is Professor of Marketing at Turku School of Economics, University of Turku, Finland. She specializes in service research and her current projects focus on topics such as customer experience and journeys, customer/actor engagement, and value driven business. Her research has been published e.g. in Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Service Research, Journal of Product Innovation Management, Industrial Marketing Management, Journal of Business Research, and Journal of Service Management. She is an Associate Editor for Journal of Service Research and Industrial Marketing Management and serves in the Editorial Review Board of seven prominent journals. She has won a number of international awards for her scholarly activities and was named to the Clarivateʻs Highly Cited Researchers list in the business and economics discipline in 2021 and 2022, demonstrating exceptional research impact.
Homepage: https://www.utu.fi/en/people/elina-jaakkola
Dr. Kaisa Koskela-Huotari is an Associate Professor at the Department of Marketing and Strategy of Stockholm School of Economics, Sweden. Kaisa’s research interests lie at the intersection of service-dominant logic, institutional theory, and systems thinking. She utilizes these perspectives to understand change in social systems and inform the understandings of innovation, service design and market evolution. Her articles have been published in esteemed journals such as the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Journal of Service Research, Journal of Business Research, and Journal of Service Management among others. Kaisa is an Associate Editor for the AMS Review, the sole marketing journal exclusively dedicated to conceptual articles, and serves on the Editorial Review Board of the Journal of Service Research, Journal of Business Research, and the Journal of Service Management. Her co-authored paper with Josina Vink was honored with the 2022 Journal of Service Research Best Article Award, and in 2023, she received the Mary Jo Bitner “Rising Star in Services” Award.
Homepage: https://www.hhs.se/en/persons/k/koskela-huotari-kaisa/
Course coordinator and contact information:
Elina Jaakkola, elina.jaakkola@utu.fi; 044 510 9499